Togami didn't know where he was at first, when he woke up in a room that didn't contain his own rich furnishings. Then the sensations of warmth and comfort coalesced into the feeling of a body pressed against his side, an arm curled around his chest, legs tangled with his own. He looked down at Naegi, sleeping in his arms, and his heart skipped at the peaceful smile on the other boy's face.
He was in too deep now, and his attempt to stop it had only made things worse. It might have worked if he'd tried it sooner, or maybe he'd never had a chance at all. It didn't matter in the end, because he'd finally caught up to the knowledge that Naegi had apparently had all along.
He couldn't kill Naegi. And it wasn't just an issue of direct murder – he didn't have it in him to let the boy die even as an indirect cause of his actions. Not to put too fine a point on it, his hands had been tied.
So he wouldn't be killing anyone. It was almost a relief to acknowledge that to himself, to let go of the contradiction that had been plaguing him since Naegi had sparked his interest when he spoke up in that first trial. He wouldn't be the blackened who let the others die so he could win the game.
But he had no intention of letting himself be a victim, either. Not him or Naegi. An outcome in which either of them ended up dead would be – less than optimal. And Byakuya Togami never accepted anything but the best.
An outcome where they both survived. Could it be possible? The other students all kept chattering on about it, but they were stupid and blind with denial. They only thought it because they were too frightened to face the reality of the situation.
Except that Naegi had trusted him, had known him before he'd known himself. If Naegi had been right in this, maybe he knew what he was talking about with the rest of it, too. Maybe there could be hope.
Unfortunately, hope in this case probably involved working with the rest of the group again. Togami grimaced, but he didn't really see a way around it. Any attempt to defy the mastermind's plan would fail if everyone didn't commit to it fully, he'd seen that from the start. All it would take was one person deciding to chance things alone, and any attempt at working as a group would fall apart.
But that only made it all the more imperative that he be part of whatever idiocy the other students got up to. He had to know who would be most susceptible to the inevitable lure of betrayal. After all, he was sure that there was no way Naegi could be convinced to abandon the rest of his so-called friends. When someone snapped, Naegi would be in the line of fire.
That would be unacceptable. If Togami wasn't going to kill Naegi, no one else would be allowed to do so either. He ran his fingers through the boy's soft hair, then down to let them rest along his neck. Naegi's pulse beat strong and sure beneath his fingertips. It should stay that way.
Naegi stirred beneath his touch, burrowing closer against him with a sleepy little noise of contentment, and the movement set something fizzing beneath Togami's ribs. He'd never expected to have anything like this, and the thoughts it inspired were too much to take, warm and soft and sweet.
He needed to know that Naegi would feel the same, that the same sentimental nonsense would fill his head, and so he tilted Naegi's head up towards his to kiss him awake. Whatever else might cross the other boy's mind today, Togami would have the satisfaction of knowing that this would be the first thing Naegi had thought about.
Junko propped her head on one hand and watched as Naegi woke up to Togami's kisses. She had to admit, she hadn't really seen this coming. With the look on Togami's face when he'd approached Naegi's door the previous night, she'd thought for sure he'd finally had murder in his sights.
It really was a shame. Of course all her friends were precious and she shouldn't choose favorites, but she'd been rooting for Togami. After all, wouldn't it be perfect if the person with the least to go back to in the outside world sacrificed the most to return there?
But that seemed to be off the table now, with the besotted way he'd been watching Naegi sleep. Of all the emotional ties that she'd thought might echo back from the memory erasure and cause problems, this had barely made her list. After all, it had taken Togami months to work out that he'd had a crush back when they'd been classmates. Who knew he'd manage to get his act together quicker this time around?
He'd certainly figured it out now, though. Ugh, pressing kisses down Naegi's neck and running fingers through his sleep-mussed hair – it was all so – so –
So cute! Junko clasped her hands to her chest as a wave of glee rose in her. Who wouldn't be pleased to see two of her darling friends so very happy together? She just loved them so much that she couldn't keep their adorable new relationship all to herself.
She had to share it.
