The doors of Hope's Peak Academy opened slowly, and fifteen students emerged staring out at what was left of the outside world. The apocalypse had been no lie, and for a moment, they all took some time to behold the terrifying sight before them, but none of them fell into despair. They simply looked to Naegi, the one who seemed to be leading them.
When he realized everyone was looking at him, he decided to think of something quickly. "First of all, we should go find a place to stay. Then we can think up a plan as to where we're going from there." Naegi suggested.
"We should hurry, we don't know who's out here." Ikusaba said looking around for any immediate danger.
Naegi nodded and led the group along the seemingly deserted streets. It seemed no one was around, but there was no way to be sure. They walked with caution staring up at the tallest building still standing. The local bank stood tall, and proud, with no use to the people still alive.
Kuwata pointed up at the bank, "Look, maybe we should stop here, and try to rest."
"That may not be wise." Kirigiri pointed out to them.
"Why's that?" Kuwata asked, his flaming red hair blazing in the sunlight.
"Doesn't it seem strange that it's one of the only buildings in tact? It's possible Despair soldiers live within it's walls. In fact, going anywhere near the building might result in unwanted death." Kirigiri explained herself.
"Isn't any death unwanted?" Hagakure asked raising a brow.
"Precisely." Kirigiri responded.
"She's right, let's look for a place that looks abandoned." Naegi nodded.
The group followed Naegi around the city. Off in the distance they spotted people in bear masks fighting with some civilians in the middle of the street. The group hid as best as they could, and found themselves in front of a small apartment building. "Let's hide here for now." Kirigiri suggested to Naegi.
Naegi nodded making sure the others entered the building ahead of him. "We're staying here for the night guys, make sure you each find a place. Once everyone had passed through the doors, Naegi found a broken stair railing and hooked it across the entrance through the door handles. Testing it, he felt it was secure enough for the moment.
The group looked around spotting only some charcoal coloured bones. They likely were the remains of the previous tenants, but it was hard to say how many months they had been there. Celestia and Togami looked around one of the apartments with disgust, "You expect me to sleep on this bed? It's likely crawling with fleas!" Celes said squeamishly.
Naegi looked over at the bed, the mattress was overall in good condition, "Maybe you should look for new sheets to put on it. It'll be ok Celes, we just don't have much options right at the moment."
Naegi was still hurt, but he hid it well. Ikusaba was not convinced, however, and touched his elbow gently. "You need to rest. Kirigiri and I will take over from here."
Looking into her cold blue eyes Naegi nodded, "Alright... I'll lie down." He headed to the basement apartment. It was dark down there, but despite everything it seemed to be in good condition.
Lying down on the blue and orange striped bed, Naegi sighed with relief. Finally he could rest his body. He closed his eyes for a little while, and it seemed as though he had just closed his eyes when he opened them to see Maizono sitting by his bedside. "Maizono-chan?" He asked curiously.
"I came to watch over you while you slept." She told him.
"O-oh, that's very kind of you." He smiled a little.
She smiled, seemingly relieved he was alright. "It's night time now... I wasn't sure if you were hungry."
"No, but thank you. I think I'll eat tomorrow when I wake up. Has anyone checked for food in here by any chance?" Naegi asked her.
"We found a few cans of soup, and some canned fruit, but nothing else. We likely can't stay here long." Maizono told him.
"Yeah... it's better we find a place we can plant our roots for good." Naegi nodded.
Maizono smiled sweetly, "I'm glad you're doing better... I don't think I could carry on without you." She smiled.
Naegi was sure he was going pink, "I feel the same about you." He looked at her honestly.
"You should get some more sleep, Naegi-kun. I'll wake you when it's morning." She smiled.
"W-wait... is there anyone on watch while everyone sleeps?" Naegi asked concerned.
"Yes, Ishimaru-san is watching over us first, then Oowada-san will watch until it's time to get up." Maizono informed him.
Naegi relaxed a little more, "That's a relief. I'm really glad we're all together. It makes this whole experience less scary..."
Maizono smiled, "Rest, Naegi. You need it."
Naegi nodded and closed his eyes lying back on the bed. It felt nice to be watched over, but at the same time, he wondered why Maizono would do that for him. Surely, a girl like her wasn't interested in a guy like him.
Hours later he woke up to see Maizono was gone already. He wasn't sure where she had gone, but he was awake and ready to get up regardless. When he ventured to the main level everyone was in the first level apartment, and they were all placing trash in a garbage can to start a fire.
Togami stood idly by, arms crossed watching the scene unfold. Kuwata and Ishimaru argued for a bit about how to light the fire with no lighter, while Celes had Yamada open her a can of fruit salad. Fukawa sat in the corner alone, staring at Togami as though he was a holy artefact. It seemed Kirigiri was sitting alone watching the scene unfold before them. "Guys, why don't we just open the cans of food, and eat it cold, It's just soup, it'll be ok." Naegi heard the guys groan.
"I ain't eatin' no soup that's cold and disgusting." Oowada glared at Naegi.
"Relax." Ikusaba walked in with a lit match and lit the trash on fire. "I've found a solution."
The group relaxed and put all the chicken soup in a big pot to boil it over the flames. Naegi spotted Maizono asleep on the couch next to Kirigiri. It seemed she had given up on him halfway through the night. He didn't take it to heart, he'd expect she got some decent sleep.
Sakura and Asahina stood by the windows watching outside, and Hagakure seemed preoccupied with his tarot cards in the corner. It was hard to say what their next move should be, so Naegi decided everyone should talk it out over breakfast. "So guys... what does everyone think we should do next?"
The group began to ponder idea's and before long, more arguments sprouted out. "Everyone calm down!" Naegi raised his voice as he held his bowl of soup.
"Look if we're going to make it out of here, and make it alive, we've got to think of a solid plan." Naegi told them.
"We could head for the woods and camp out." Asahina suggested.
"So we can get mauled by bears? No thanks." Kuwata shot her down.
"What if we find an armoury and camp out there?" Sakura suggested next.
"Where do you plan to find one of those Toots?" Oowada raised a brow at the giant woman.
Chihiro sat with a laptop on his lap listening intently, but it wasn't until Hagakure spoke up that everyone stopped arguing. "There's a diner on the way out of town, its more like a rest stop. It's got a motel attached to it. We could go there, and make a shelter."
"That's actually a good idea... it's out of the way, and we'd each have a place to go." Naegi nodded.
Everyone looked at one another, and no one seemed to have any complaints. "We should pack up anything useful here, and find a means of transportation. Walking will do us no good." Togami piped up.
"Maybe we can find a truck of some sort..." Kuwata suggested.
Maizono sat on the couch watching Naegi with interest. He tried not to stare, but he watched her smile when she caught his eye. Sakura found an answer to their transportation issue, and pointed out they were directly across from a hardware store, meaning there were shipment trucks still parked outside the building.
Ikusaba and Oowada decided to make sure the trucks had gas, and could run. They were lucky Oowada knew how to hotwire, because no keys were to be found in the vehicle otherwise. The truck started up without much issue, and the tank was half full, which was more than enough to make it to the rest stop Hagakure suggested.
They all scavenged the apartments for anything useful before loading it up in the back of the truck. Hagakure offered to drive, and Naegi sat next to him for the ride much to Togami's distaste. They made a few stops on the way to load up more items into the back of the truck before they headed straight for Koga's Rest-Stop.
Once they arrived Everyone piled out of the truck, and began first by searching the place over. It seemed no one was there, and the diner had remained closed with no exterior damages. It seemed too good to be true, but they weren't going to complain. "Alright everyone, there is only eight rooms meaning we will all need a roommate." Naegi told them all.
"Well, one of us is able to sleep alone if there are only fifteen of us." Togami reasoned.
"No way man! We're all going to draw straws or something, because I ain't just lettin' you get the single room." Oowada stood up to Togami.
Everyone seemed to agree on that idea, and They pulled out fifteen white straws, only cutting the end off one of them. Naegi held them out and let everyone pick a straw. Once everyone pulled their straw, it was discovered that Leon Kuwata had one the draw. "Yes!" He smirked, his brilliant blue eyes flashing with pride.
Everyone else let out a heavy sigh. "Well I'm bunking with Sakura-chan!" Asahina announced happy.
Celes spoke up next, "Maizono and I will be sharing."
"I'll share with Ikusaba." Kirigiri decided.
"I will bunk with Oowada-kun." Ishimaru decided
"Great." Oowada stated, "Better than Togami anyhow."
Togami looked at his remaining options, "Naegi and I-"
Hagakure wrapped an arm around Naegi's neck, "Back off, he's my bed buddy! You can share with crazy."
Togami leered, "I called him first."
"I think you should share with Fukawa, her serial killer side actually listens to you." Yamada pointed out.
"Who else agrees?" Asahina raised a hand.
Fukawa couldn't help but blush a bit at the prospect. Togami had little choice beyond that decision. "Fine. I'll share with Fukawa who will sleep in the tub tonight." He shot a look at her.
Yamada looked at Chihiro, "Don't worry Chihiro-san, I will be respectful of your womanly needs."
Chihiro smiled a bit, "Thanks."
"I guess that settles it then. Everyone, go ahead, and search out what ever food you can, and then we'll unload the truck." Naegi decided. The rest of the group followed his lead.